Here’s Why You Should Take Portraits in Landscape Orientation
Photo by Parker Whitson on&nb
Portraits in landscape orientation? What is this madness?
Yes, you should take portraits in landscape orientation, and you should do it a lot.
In fact, there are a whole host of reasons why landscape-oriented portraits are the way to go. Learn more about camera setup for landscape photography on our website PhotographyTalk.com.
Below, I’ve outlined three primary reasons why you should take portraits in landscape orientation.
Already have the perfect portrait ready to print? Start the process now and have a gorgeous print in a matter of days.
Landscape-Oriented Portraits Can Be Cropped to Portrait Orientation
photo by dusanpetkovic via iStock
First and foremost, when you create a portrait that’s in landscape format, you can easily crop it to portrait format.
This gives you the best of both worlds because you have both options on the table.
However, when you create a portrait in portrait format, there’s no going back - you’re stuck with a vertical aspect photo (unless you take vertical and horizontal images each time).
Personally, I just like having the option to process the image in landscape or portrait format, should I desire a change from the original.
Besides, it’s just easier and faster to take one landscape-oriented portrait each time, rather than taking two shots of each pose.
Get more portrait photography composition tips in the video above by Weekly Imogen.
Why You Should Take Portraits in Landscape Orientation: It’s Best for Displaying
When creating a portrait, you have to consider how the finish project will be best displayed.
For example, most of us don’t have long, tall areas of wall on which to hang a large portrait. Furniture, lamps, and other items are often in the way of doing so.
However, what most of us do have are wide areas of walls that are perfect for landscape-oriented portraits.
Better still, you can create a photo display with numerous landscape-format portraits to fill a long, wide wall.
I’ve done just that in my house with canvas prints, and I think it looks awesome!
Of course, looking awesome is partly due to your skills as a portrait photographer, but the types of prints you get matter as well.
I like canvas because it has a classic look. I like the subtle texture of the substrate because I think it gives nice depth and definition to my portraits.
As I expound upon in this canvas print review, not all canvas companies are made alike.
If you have landscape-oriented portraits you’d like printed, give CanvasHQ a try.
These guys are dedicated to crafting the perfect canvas print.
They do so by using premium inks, archival-grade canvas, and hand-crafting the frame.
Their prints look like a million bucks, but are extremely affordable, so it’s the best of both worlds.
I’m telling you - the combination of a portrait in landscape format and a high-quality canvas is a great one!
Portraits in Landscape Orientation Allow You to Tell a Better Story
photo by Ben Gingell via iStock
A final advantage of taking portraits in landscape format is that it often gives you more creative freedom for telling a story with the photo.
If you think about it, a more traditional vertical portrait like the one above omits much of the subject’s surroundings.
But it’s often the surroundings that help you create part of the narrative about the person in the shot, what they’re doing, where they are, and so forth.
photo by borchee via iStock
Obviously, there are times when the surroundings aren’t all that great and a tightly framed portrait is best.
But if the situation is like above, and the subject is amongst great beauty, a landscape-format portrait is definitely the way to go.
